1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to systems, methods, and computer program products related to interactive medical testing and the diagnosis of medical conditions using portable consumer devices.
2. The Relevant Technology
Modern medical practices and technology have enriched and extended human life through the treatment of a variety of medical conditions. Inherent in treating medical conditions is first detecting that those medical conditions exist. While some medical conditions may be readily ascertainable, others may remain undetected absent affirmative diagnostic steps.
Many people are afflicted with medical conditions that cause degraded sensory input, such as medical conditions relating to vision and/or hearing. Because humans experience the world through sensory input, the relative quality of a person's sensory input is inherently subjective. A person may therefore have a medical condition causing degraded (or degrading) sensory input while being unaware of the problem. As such, medical scientists have developed many objective tests designed to measure sensory input. The data from these tests can be used to diagnose which medical condition(s) are causing the deficiencies. Other medical conditions unrelated to sensory input, may also be detected and diagnosed through testing (e.g., blood tests, blood pressure testing, etc.). As such, medical testing, examination, and diagnosis have become a standard part of modern life in recent decades.
Medical examination and diagnosis are generally carried out directly by medical professionals (e.g., doctors, nurses, lab technicians, and the like) at a hospital, doctor's office, or other medical facility. Accordingly, patients often have to travel to a medical establishment for follow-up testing to track the progress of treatment, or to detect further degradation or other changes related to the known condition. Even when people are unaware of any medical condition that needs to be treated, it is still common for such people to travel to a medical establishment to ascertain whether they have a medical condition based on a suspicion that a medical condition may exist, or as a routine and/or proactive step to detect medical conditions as they arise.
Unfortunately, a trip to a medical facility can involve a significant inconvenience for patients and, sometimes, for medical professionals as well. Patients, for example, suffer the inconvenience in terms of time (e.g., time to set up an appointment, time to drive to the medical establishment, time waiting at the medical establishment for the medical professional to become available), money (e.g., money spent traveling, money paid to medical professionals and medical establishments, money paid to insurance, money unearned due to lost work time), and the inconvenience of having to arrange schedules around medical professionals and family members who often have to drive or accompany an elderly patient.
For patients that are being tested merely on a suspicion that a medical condition may exist or as a preventative measure, this inconvenience can be exasperated when no medical condition is found through the testing. For medical professionals, medical testing can be a distraction from more important tasks, both in terms of attention directed to more critical or productive medical tasks (e.g., continuing education, treatment of other patients), and in terms of attention directed to more lucrative activities.
Accordingly, there remains some room for further development in the field of medical testing and diagnosis.